Monday, 20 October 2014

New Doctor Who Game: The Doctor and the Dalek

The BBC have announced plans to release a new online game for children as part of the BBC's Make It Digital initiative to introduce computer skills to the younger generation.

The Doctor and the Dalek - which was commissioned by BBC Learning, developed and produced by BBC Wales and Somethin’ Else in association with BBC Future Media - will feature the Twelth Doctor, voiced by Peter Capaldi, in a new story written by Doctor Who writer Phil Ford (Into The Dalek, The Waters of Mars).

The game will be puzzled based, with the player controlling a Dalek and solving puzzles to gain powers such as flying, helping the Doctor to rebuild the Dalek. The puzzles are all linked to a new computing curriculum, designed to help children pick up basic programming skills as they play. The game covers several topics including combining instructions to accomplish a goal, using variables to alter behaviour, repetition and loops and logical reasoning. These skills are integrated into the game, keeping it fun as well as educational. There will also be resources from the BBC and third parties available to help parents and teachers to ensure that the children get the most out of the game.

Danny Cohen, BBC Director of Television, said:

“The Doctor and the Dalek is a brand new Doctor Who story and a fantastic game, voiced by the wonderful Peter Capaldi. It’s an excellent example of how a hugely popular BBC show can give fans something extra, whilst also introducing wider audiences to increasingly important skills, such as coding and programming.”

Sinéad Rocks, Head of BBC Learning, added:

“We’re really excited about the launch of The Doctor and the Dalek as not only is it a really entertaining platform game for kids to play but it’s also a great introduction to some key principles of computer programing. Every puzzle has a strong link to the KS2 or KS3 computer science curriculum. So we think it’s going to be a really valuable tool for students, parents and teachers.”

The Doctor and the Dalek will be available to play for free on the CBBC website from Wednesday 22nd October.